General election in North Korea 2009
The general election in North Korea in 2009 was the election for the 12th Supreme People's Assembly of North Korea . It took place on March 8, 2009 .
Originally, the polling should take place on August 3, 2008. Kim Jong-il is said to have had a stroke in August 2008 , so the election was postponed.
Electoral system
Like the previous elections in North Korea, it was a matter of voting without a choice between different political groups. In each constituency there was exactly one candidate who belonged to the Democratic Front for the reunification of the fatherland .
The North Korean head of state Kim Jong-il , general secretary of the Labor Party of Korea , ran in constituency No. 333 and, according to official figures, was re-elected to parliament with 100 percent of the votes and 100 percent turnout.
Contrary to the expectations of foreign observers, Kim's son Kim Jong-un was not among the candidates. This could have been brought into play as a possible successor at the top of the state.
Protest actions in advance
The election was largely uneventful. However, prior acts of sabotage occurred in some areas. In Mundŭk in the P'yŏngan-namdo province, for example, election posters were occasionally destroyed. Anti-election graffiti was also seen. In Sariwon , strangers set fire to the building of a tobacco factory that was to serve as a polling station. The North Korean authorities accused South Korea of trying to sabotage the election. Vandalism against state institutions or statements critical of the government are severely punished in North Korea.
Result
A total of 687 MPs were elected. According to official figures, the voter turnout was 99.98 percent. In the previous elections, the following voter turnouts were given: in 1998 it was 99.85 percent and 99.90 percent in 2003.
| coalition | Political party | be right | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland |
Labor Party of Korea | 100.00% | 606 |
| Korean Social Democratic Party | 50 | ||
| Chondoist Ch'ngu party | 22nd | ||
| Non-party | 9 | ||
| Total | 100.00% | 687 | |
| Turnout: 99.98% | |||
MPs
In addition to Kim Jong-il, several top-ranking politicians in North Korea were re-elected to the Supreme People's Assembly. For example, the chairman of the parliamentary presidium of the last electoral term Kim Yong-nam , the younger brother Kim Il-sung and deputy chairman of the parliamentary presidium Kim Yŏng-chu , the sister Kim Jong-ils and chairman of the department for light industry at the Central Committee of the PDAK Kim Kyŏng- hŭi and her husband Chang Sung-taek , Foreign Minister Pak Ui-chun , his deputy Kang Sok-ju , the chairman of the Council of Ministers Kim Yong-il , the chairman of the Chondoist Ch'ŏngu party Ryu Mi-yong and the chairman of the Korean Social Democratic Party ( KSDP) Kim Yŏng-dae .
See also
Web links
- List of elected MPs on the KCNA news agency website (Korean)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Daily NK : Elections for 12th Term Delegates to Supreme People's Assembly to Be Held August 3 (June 20, 2008)
- ↑ NZZ online : New reference to Kim Jong Il's state of health
- ^ CIA World Factbook : North Korea
- ^ NZZ online : Kim Jong Il unanimously re-elected
- ^ Daily NK : Anti-election Graffiti around Pyongang Province
- ↑ nkNet : Five anti-election graffitis in Haeju, th ... in Sariwon Sariwon tobacco factory on fire
- ↑ AFP : NKorea's Kim wins parliamentary seat: official media
